Ask A Lawyer

Tell Us Your Case Information for Fastest Lawyer Match!

Please include all relevant details from your case including where, when, and who it involoves. Case details that can effectively describe the legal situation while also staying concise generally receive the best responses from lawyers.

LAWPOINTS™ measure the overall completeness of a Lawyer's profile. More complete profiles are ranked higher and help visitors select the right lawyer faster.We help paid Members build more complete and informative profiles.LAWPOINTS™ do not measure a Lawyer's reputation.More Info for Lawyers

LAWPOINTS™ measure the overall completeness of a Lawyer's profile. More complete profiles are ranked higher and help visitors select the right lawyer faster.We help paid Members build more complete and informative profiles.LAWPOINTS™ do not measure a Lawyer's reputation.More Info for Lawyers

LAWPOINTS™ measure the overall completeness of a Lawyer's profile. More complete profiles are ranked higher and help visitors select the right lawyer faster.We help paid Members build more complete and informative profiles.LAWPOINTS™ do not measure a Lawyer's reputation.More Info for Lawyers

LAWPOINTS™ measure the overall completeness of a Lawyer's profile. More complete profiles are ranked higher and help visitors select the right lawyer faster.We help paid Members build more complete and informative profiles.LAWPOINTS™ do not measure a Lawyer's reputation.More Info for Lawyers

LAWPOINTS™ measure the overall completeness of a Lawyer's profile. More complete profiles are ranked higher and help visitors select the right lawyer faster.We help paid Members build more complete and informative profiles.LAWPOINTS™ do not measure a Lawyer's reputation.More Info for Lawyers

LAWPOINTS™ measure the overall completeness of a Lawyer's profile. More complete profiles are ranked higher and help visitors select the right lawyer faster.We help paid Members build more complete and informative profiles.LAWPOINTS™ do not measure a Lawyer's reputation.More Info for Lawyers

LAWPOINTS™ measure the overall completeness of a Lawyer's profile. More complete profiles are ranked higher and help visitors select the right lawyer faster.We help paid Members build more complete and informative profiles.LAWPOINTS™ do not measure a Lawyer's reputation.More Info for Lawyers

LAWPOINTS™ measure the overall completeness of a Lawyer's profile. More complete profiles are ranked higher and help visitors select the right lawyer faster.We help paid Members build more complete and informative profiles.LAWPOINTS™ do not measure a Lawyer's reputation.More Info for Lawyers

LAWPOINTS™ measure the overall completeness of a Lawyer's profile. More complete profiles are ranked higher and help visitors select the right lawyer faster.We help paid Members build more complete and informative profiles.LAWPOINTS™ do not measure a Lawyer's reputation.More Info for Lawyers

LAWPOINTS™ measure the overall completeness of a Lawyer's profile. More complete profiles are ranked higher and help visitors select the right lawyer faster.We help paid Members build more complete and informative profiles.LAWPOINTS™ do not measure a Lawyer's reputation.More Info for Lawyers

LEGAL TERMS

PRETERMITTED HEIR

A child or spouse who is not mentioned in a will and whom the court believes was accidentally overlooked by the person who made the will. For example, a child b... (more...)

A child or spouse who is not mentioned in a will and whom the court believes was accidentally overlooked by the person who made the will. For example, a child born or adopted after the will is made may be deemed a pretermitted heir. If the court determines that an heir was accidentally omitted, that heir is entitled to receive the same share of the estate as she would have if the deceased had died without a will. A pretermitted heir is sometimes called an 'omitted heir.'

GRANTOR RETAINED INCOME TRUST

Irrevocable trusts designed to save on estate tax. There are several kinds; with all of them, you keep income from trust property, or use of that property, for ... (more...)

Irrevocable trusts designed to save on estate tax. There are several kinds; with all of them, you keep income from trust property, or use of that property, for a period of years. When the trust ends, the property goes to the final beneficiaries you've named. These trusts are for people who have enough wealth to feel comfortable giving away a substantial hunk of property. They come in three flavors: Grantor-Retained Annuity Trusts (GRATs), Grantor-Retained Unitrusts (GRUTs) and Grantor-Retained Income Trusts (GRITs).

ESTATE TAXES

Taxes imposed by the state or federal government on property as it passes from the dead to the living. All property you own, whatever the form of ownership, and... (more...)

Taxes imposed by the state or federal government on property as it passes from the dead to the living. All property you own, whatever the form of ownership, and whether or not it goes through probate after your death, is subject to federal estate tax. Currently, however, federal estate tax is due only if your property is worth at least $2 million when you die. The estate tax is scheduled to be repealed for one year, in 2010, but Congress will probably make the repeal (or a very high exempt amount) permanent. Any property left to a surviving spouse (if he or she is a U.S. citizen) or a tax-exempt charity is exempt from federal estate taxes. Many states now also impose their own estate taxes or inheritance taxes.

PER STIRPES

Under a will, a method of determining who inherits property when a joint beneficiary has died before the willmaker, leaving living children of his or her own. F... (more...)

Under a will, a method of determining who inherits property when a joint beneficiary has died before the willmaker, leaving living children of his or her own. For example, Fred leaves his house jointly to his son Alan and his daughter Julie. But Alan dies before Fred, leaving two young children. If Fred's will states that heirs of a deceased beneficiary are to receive the property 'per stirpes,' Julie will receive one-half of the property, and Alan's two children will share his half in equal shares (through Alan by right of representation). If, on the other hand, Fred's will states that the property is to be divided per capita, Julie and the two grandchildren will each take a third.

LETTERS TESTAMENTARY

The document given to an executor by the probate court, authorizing the executor to settle the estate according to either a will or the state's intestate succes... (more...)

The document given to an executor by the probate court, authorizing the executor to settle the estate according to either a will or the state's intestate succession laws.

HEIR AT LAW

A person entitled to inherit property under intestate succession laws.

DEED OF TRUST

See trust deed.

TRUST CORPUS

Latin for 'the body' of the trust. This term refers to all the property transferred to a trust. For example, if a trust is established (funded) with $250,000, t... (more...)

Latin for 'the body' of the trust. This term refers to all the property transferred to a trust. For example, if a trust is established (funded) with $250,000, that money is the corpus. Sometimes the trust corpus is known as the 'res,' a Latin word meaning 'thing.'

MARITAL LIFE ESTATE TRUST

See AB trust.

SAMPLE LEGAL CASES

Stephen Parker, as administrator of the estate of Irma E. Young, deceased (the Estate), filed this
petition under Probate Code section 850, subdivision (a), [1] to request an order and judgment
establishing the Estate's ownership of certain real property and personal property held by ...

In this case we must decide whether a widow has the right to use her late husband's frozen sperm
to attempt to conceive a child where her late husband signed an agreement with the company
storing the frozen sperm providing that the frozen sperm was to be discarded upon his ...